1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to airplanes. More specifically, but without limitation thereto, the present invention relates to the body of a supersonic airplane.
2. Discussion of the Background Art
One of the major problems with supersonic airplane travel over land is the sonic boom created by the airplane. It is such a major problem that commercial airlines are prohibited from flying over land at supersonic speeds.
Commercial supersonic airplanes are known in the art. For example, the Concorde jet is capable of traveling from Paris to New York in three hours, 45 minutes at a cruising speed of Mach 2 or 1,370 miles per hour. The Concorde's seating capacity is 100 passengers and it usually has a crew of nine. Daily service between New York and Paris started in 1977. The Concorde is able to fly this route because the majority of the flight is over the Atlantic Ocean. However, a flight from Paris to Los Angeles would not be feasible due to the sonic boom created by the airplane as it flew over much of the United States. When flying over land the Concorde would need to greatly reduce its speed so as not to create a sonic boom. This would substantially defeat the purpose of having a supersonic airplane.
Thus, there would be a much better market for a supersonic airplane if the airplane could fly over land with no sonic boom or very minimal sonic boom. Thus there is a need for an commercial passenger airplane design, such as a business jet design, to eliminate the problems discussed above.